


In Defense of Valentine's Day

by vino_and_doggos



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist (Anime 2003), Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Hyuroi Week, Hyuroi Week 2019, M/M, Prompt: Valentine, Questionable food safety choices, There be sex here, Valentine's Day, best laid plans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 08:24:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17783960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vino_and_doggos/pseuds/vino_and_doggos
Summary: “It’s a ridiculous Hallmark Holiday that the corporations made up to trick the masses into believing they need to buy cards and chocolate and jewelry to let their significant other know they enjoy their company.”“While I can see and understand your point, what is wrong with a holiday that celebrates love and relationships? Valentine’s Day doesn’t feel like an obligation or work when you’re with the right person.”“Are you saying I’m the right person, Roy Mustang?”Roy’s cheeks flushed, but for the first time in this conversation, he had a good comeback. “I’m not sure. Are you willing to give my favorite holiday a shot?”Written for Hyuroi Week 2019!





	In Defense of Valentine's Day

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentine's Day!!! Whether you're a cynic like Maes or a hopeless romantic like Roy, here's a Valentine's Day story for all.
> 
> Endless thanks and praise to [A Passing Housewife](https://archiveofourown.org/users/flourchildwrites), AKA flourchildwrites, AKA the reason any of my stories are actually legible for the public eye. Happy Valentine's Day, friend <3

“I never really cared much for Valentine’s Day.”

Only eight words. And yet, that was all it took to rock Roy Mustang’s world. Who on earth didn’t like Valentine’s Day?

Maes Hughes was apparently the answer.

He pecked away at the laptop as if the matter-of-fact statement was the only argument that held any water, stopping only momentarily to adjust the slouched beanie covering his dark, spiky hair. Roy absentmindedly picked at the sleeve of his flannel shirt as a blush burned through his body.

As always, Roy was unwilling to to meet his boyfriend’s gaze before he had the best argument in his suave arsenal at the ready. Alas, nothing quippy came to mind, and Roy settled for his honest appraisal of the situation. Roy was an idealist at heart, a hopeless romantic, and Maes, the jaded hipster, was not.

“How can you not like Valentine’s Day?” Roy all but whined, defeated by his lack of cold, hard facts in defense of the holiday.

The hustle and bustle of the student union around them continued on as if Roy’s entire worldview hadn’t just been shattered - simply _shattered_. He finally had a boyfriend - in fact, they had been together since last May. Their relationship had started just as their junior year was ending. After making eyes at each other across the coffee shop they both took a break in on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Maes finally plucked up the courage to ask Roy out. Dates, kisses, and awkward fumblings that eventually led to good sex followed months later.

But was the relationship worth anything if said boyfriend _didn’t like_ Roy’s absolute favorite holiday?

“Quite easily in fact,” Maes said. Peering over his glasses, his fingers stalled across the keyboard in front of him. Roy’s stricken face hovered over the cup of Starbucks he held in his hands, his notes and highlighters abandoned in the wake of the news he just received.

Maes continued, simply raising an eyebrow, almost looking completely unperturbed. “It’s a ridiculous Hallmark Holiday that the corporations made up to trick the masses into believing they need to buy cards and chocolate and jewelry to let their significant other know they enjoy their company.”

Roy gaped like a koi that hopped up on land for an afternoon stroll.

“That’s not even remotely the point!” he retorted.

“Ah, but it is, my beloved Roy,” he countered as he resumed typing, the clack of the keys lost in the drone of other students milling around them. “What is more meaningful? Flowers delivered on Valentine’s Day because your beloved felt they were required by a social contract? Or rather flowers delivered on a random Thursday because your beloved was thinking of you?”

Roy’s jaw clicked shut as he considered what his boyfriend said to him and quickly parried. “While I can see and understand your point, what is wrong with a holiday that celebrates love and relationships? Valentine’s Day doesn’t feel like an obligation or work when you’re with the right person.”

“Are you saying I’m the right person, Roy Mustang?”

Roy’s cheeks flushed, but for the first time in this conversation, he had a good comeback. “I’m not sure. Are you willing to give my favorite holiday a shot?”

Maes’s glasses flashed as he looked up from the words on his screen, light filtering in from the pretentious (in Roy’s opinion) skylights in the ceiling. He chuckled and raised his hands, surrendering. “Okay, okay, you win. What do you want to do for Valentine’s Day, lover boy?”

A gentle smile broke across Roy’s face. “Really, Maes, you break too easily. Criminal justice majors such as yourself need to have a little more backbone.”

“Oh, because chemistry majors know all about that, don’t they?” Maes laughed. “Seriously, Roy,” he continued, “what do you want to do? I’m yours on February the 14th.”

Roy gasped and dramatically put a hand to his chest. “But what about the other 364 days of the year?”

Maes shoved Roy’s hand down playfully, and behind his stylish glasses, Roy spotted the man he’d grown to love beneath all the cynicism and bravado. “All right, drama queen, you’ve made your point. But honestly, we can do whatever you please for Valentine’s Day.” A winning smirk crossed his face. “You might just change my mind about this corporate money grab.”

 

* * *

 

Roy walked across the snowy campus later that evening. The tree-lined campus seemed to come alive in the wind. Beautiful buildings, a delightful combination of red brick and grey shingles. The conical turrets of the administrative building on campus were Roy’s favorite part of campus. It made him think of Hogwarts, especially covered in crystals of ice and snow.

Some might have see a senior living on campus as a major drag. Roy saw it as an advantage, though. He still had a meal plan, meaning he never had to go grocery shopping, (just suffer through dining hall meals) and he was still close to the lab for experiments that needed babysitting into the late hours of the night.

The on-campus building that he lived in was furthest from the center of campus and was the nicest living space on campus. The dark brick that adorned the outside was a stark contrast to the light, almost sterile interior of the building. Hallways were painted a boring beige, accented with a slightly darker, low-pile carpet that was typical of the dorm buildings on campus.

Most importantly, though, in that building, he managed to have his own bedroom and only shared a bathroom with two other people. It was a strange combination of a suite-style dorm building and an apartment building. But that unusual set-up made the place one of the most desirable, and Roy was ecstatic to live there. It was worth the walk.

Roy’s mind rewound as he spied a group of prospective students and their parents touring the snowcapped halls of their quaint little university. Though it hadn’t been that long ago, he chuckled, breath visible in a wispy puff of white, as he took a turn down memory lane and turned his collar up against the wind. Why would they tour the campus during Winter, he thought. Was I that small as a freshman? But then, the setting sun caught his eye, and Roy remembered that there truly was beauty all around him. Winter sunsets were a favorite part of his walk; the bright pinks and reds tinged with purples and blues that reflected off of the snow filled him with a warmth that the chill in the air sought to seep from his body.

The color of the sky forced the upcoming holiday to the forefront of his mind. What on earth was he going to do to make this Valentine’s Day great? And ensure that Maes would celebrate it with him from then on out?

Grand plans with champagne and rose petals accompanied by classy dinner party music floated through Roy’s head. He walked dazedly past his favorite copse of sycamore trees whose leaves had abandoned their branches months prior - bare very much like his bank account. His work study job only did so much to help out with expenses. He hated relying on his foster mother for money and refused to text her for help on principle.

How could he give Maes the best Valentine’s Day of his life on the budget of a college senior?

Suddenly, the hazy clouds blocking the vestiges of the day’s sunlight parted in a gust of wind. Roy had an idea. It couldn’t fail, right?

 

* * *

 

February 14th arrived with as little pomp and circumstance of any other day. Roy awoke to birds chirping and smiled as the winter sun filtered around the school-issued, plastic, pathetic excuse for a window treatment.

Roy’s grin widened, and a sly glint filled his dark eyes. Today was the day.

Leisurely, he rolled over and grabbed his phone from the pillow beside him, pressing the button to unlock the screen. The clock read 7:28 a.m. - two whole minutes before his alarm was set to go off.

Bliss.

A minute later, he sent a simple message.

 

**Roy Mustang** , 07:29: Good morning. I love you <3

 

Wearing a content expression, equal parts eager and optimistic, he let his hand fall to his chest as he stared at the off-white ceiling. Roy’s musings were interrupted by the alarm on his phone signaling the end of his two minutes. He pushed himself up and out of bed, grabbing his shower caddy and keys and moving towards the shared bathroom.

Emerging from the shower, drops of water still clinging to his toned body, he carefully put away his bathroom accessories (less to put away later, he thought) he realized a text message had come through.

 

**Maes Hughes** , 07:42: Good morning, yourself, lover boy. Happy Hallmark Holiday! ;) Love you too, tho <3

 

Roy tapped away at the screen, shooting off a reply. As he was pulling on a shirt, he heard his phone buzz again.

 

**Maes Hughes** , 07:53: It is *too* a Hallmark Holiday, but for your sake I’ll drop it. And sure, I can meet you at 6 at your place. Where are we going?

**Roy Mustang** , 07:55: That’s for me to know and for you to be surprised with. Don’t you have class?

**Maes Hughes** , 07:55: It doesn’t start for another 5 mins. Hmm… Let me guess. We’re headed to The Devil’s Nest, right?

**Roy Mustang** , 07:57: Yup. You caught me. Only the finest $2 drink specials and loaded fries for my beloved.

**Maes Hughes** , 07:58: ...you know that actually sounds amazing, right? Like you recognize that I wouldn’t hate that?

**Roy Mustang** , 07:58: https://imgur.com/gallery/kQ4OLts

**Roy Mustang** , 07:59: Go to class, Maes

**Maes Hughes** , 08:00: LOVE YOU!

 

Roy felt like he was smiling quite a bit more than usual, especially for an early morning, and found himself doing it yet again as he pulled his coat on. He wound his knitted scarf (a wonderful Christmas gift from Riza) around his neck, checked his bag for his notes and keys, and then braved the deceptive sunshine to head to the lab.

The day passed with relative speed, which shocked Roy. Usually, when he begged the universe to let time move faster, it laughed in his face, and what felt like 2 hours was maybe 15 minutes. Today, it seemed the world was on his side.

Until that evening, however.

Roy’s classes wrapped up at 3:30 p.m, and he swung by the dining hall along the way back to his apartment. The dining services director, Sig, was a burly man with a soft spot for grand, romantic gestures. He had set aside two choice cuts of steak for Roy, and all he asked in return was that Roy spent a few night deep cleaning a few pieces of kitchen equipment over the next month. All in all, Roy considered it more than a fair trade. Oh, the things he would do for love!

He carried the package with a spring in his step. The paper-wrapped package swung jauntily from the twine holding it together, and Roy hummed a sappy love song that he had heard over the speaker system in the student union. However, walking on cloud nine was not without its perils, and the next thing he knew, the package was flying through the air, landing in a spot miraculously bare of snow. That didn’t mean it was free of mud, though.

Roy rushed over to the butcher paper and kneeled. “Please don’t be gross; please don’t be gross; please don’t be gross,” he muttered, gingerly picking up the paper. “Oh thank god,” he said as he realized that Sig wrapped the meat in plastic wrap before packing it in the butcher paper. Saying a silent _thank you_ to who or what ever was listening, Roy gathered the plastic-wrapped steaks and began again toward his apartment.

Nodding curtly at a gaggle of girls exiting the apartment building who were eying him with disgust, he unthinkingly clasped the parcel to his chest as he reached for the door. His coat was mercifully open, so at least it wouldn’t need dry cleaned, but the liquid seeping from the plastic wrap and the mud on the scraps of paper mixed together. And whether it was the fault of mud or blood or some vengeful Valentine’s Day deity, one thing was absolutely certain: Roy’s shirt was ruined.

Cursing under his breath, he took the meat to the small, shared kitchen on the ground level. He forced himself to take a deep, cleansing breath. This was only a small hitch, after all. Some running water would help to get the remainder of the mud off. Breathe in; breathe out. And, truly, he was probably going to cook the meat to a temperature that would kill any bacteria that still decided to hitch a ride on their dinner. Breathe in; breathe out. This was a minor inconvenience. It would all be worth it.

Roy took the time to drizzle the steak in some olive oil and added some seasonings. He seared the two pieces and put them on a baking dish. Then, Roy haphazardly shoved his piece de resistance into the oven without a second glance at the recipe on his hopelessly cracked iPhone. _How different is cooking than chemistry?_ he thought to himself triumphantly. Checking his phone, he wondered how it already got to be 5:15 and rushed upstairs set the scene.

He borrowed a small table from the common area and brought it into his room. Roy covered it with a spare sheet and produced a small shopping bag from his closet. Gingerly, he put the glass that was cut to look like expensive crystal taper holders in the center of the table. After some attempts at balancing, he managed to get the ivory candles into the holders, which contrasted nicely with the red sheet serving as a tablecloth, if he did say so himself. The only thing left to do was to light the candles.

He smiled at his handy work, knowing that it wasn’t the most romantic setting in the world, but also recognizing that he was doing _exceptionally_ well with what he had. He stripped off his shirt and flicked through his closet, looking for a specific sweater… The royal blue top was Maes’s favorite of Roy’s clothing. According to Maes, the color was a really nice contrast between his dark hair and eyes, but it also was extremely soft, meaning it was comfortable for Roy to wear, but also exceptionally soft for Maes to cuddle with.

He could have sworn it was there, hanging towards the back with the rest of his sweaters. Pushing the hangers back, he pulled each one toward him individually to ensure he didn’t miss it.

Nothing.

Frustratedly, Roy growled, pulling a dark grey infantry sweater from the hanger and tugged it on instead. Now, he was going to have enough time to go back downstairs, check on the steak, start the sides, and -

A knock sounded at the door.

Roy ran his fingers through his hair, hoping to tame his locks somewhat after pulling the high-necked sweater over his head. He paced over and flung the door open, expecting it to be a neighbor, but instead he was met with familiar green eyes.

“Maes,” he breathed. “What are you doing here already?”

“What do you mean already?” the man at the door chuckled. “We said 6:00, didn’t we?”

“Sorry, I just didn’t realize the time,” Roy sheepishly apologized. “Come in, come in,” he rushed, stepping to the side and sweeping his arm into the room. It was hardly the first time that Maes had been in his dorm, but this felt significant somehow. Their first Valentine’s Day seemed to have some weight to it; was it because this was the time of the year that many proposals occured? Roy shook his head slightly to clear the clearly premature thoughts from his mind and took his boyfriend’s coat.

Maes, standing in the middle of the room, dressed smartly in a deep crimson sweater, looked at the items on the table and smirked at Roy. “I thought we were going out?”

“Ah,” Roy smiled back, as he made his way over to his open laptop on the desk, “You said that, not me. I just chose not to correct you. I’ll be your host, chef, and entertainment for the evening. I hope you don’t mind.” A few clicks later, a gentle jazz melody floated from the speakers, ensnaring both in its sensuous strains.

“Why on earth would I mind that, Roy?” His green eyes crinkled playfully as he crossed the room and closed the gap between them. Maes pressed his lips gently to his boyfriend’s forehead, and Roy tilted his chin up to capture his lips in a searing kiss.

Maes’s mouth parted, and Roy eagerly deepened the kiss, reaching up to tug on his cropped hair. The justice major chuckled and tenderly, yet insistently, pushed Roy against the door frame. A groan sounded from deep in someone’s throat - neither was quite sure whose - and suddenly hands were beneath shirts. It wasn’t the order that Mustang had planned for the night, but he was sure Maes wasn’t about to start complaining.

Just as Maes abandoned Roy’s lips and started seeking out purchase on his jawline and neck, the chemistry major managed to undo his boyfriend’s belt buckle. Roy felt the intake of breath against the skin where Maes had dampened with his mouth.

Roy chuckled darkly, letting his fingers linger over his lover’s length, and Maes shivered in kind. Let it not be said that Mustang didn’t know exactly what his boyfriend liked.

Roy sank down to his knees in front of Maes, wrestling with the button and fly of the designer jeans that fit his boyfriend oh-so-well. Happy to see that his ministrations were taking effect already, Roy began to salivate.

Freeing Maes’s member from the final layer of clothing and taking it in his mouth was transcendent every single time. There were so many things that Roy enjoyed when it came to sex with Maes, but the feeling of his mouth full and the little groan that met his ears sent jolts straight to his own groin.

As he worked the length of his lover, head bobbing somewhat in time with the music, Roy suddenly became aware of a faint buzzing noise. Normally his head didn’t start to buzz with pleasure until significantly later in their time together, but he chalked it up to a fat baby with a bow and arrow somewhere and continued his ministrations.

Maes murmured, “Roy,” and he hummed in return around the phallus in his mouth. Maes made a noise in the back of his throat and said it again.

“Roy.”

He wasn’t usually so talkative, but Roy was not about to start complaining.

“Roy.” This time with more urgency. Was he getting close already?

“I think your phone is ringing,” Maes said, his voice cracked and husky.

Oh. That would explain the buzzing.

He released Maes with a pop and smiled bashfully as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Roy kissed his boyfriend as he rose and awkwardly shuffled around the room to find where he tossed his cell phone upon entering.

“Do you see my phone?” he asked, moving pillows and the comforter around on the bed.

“Uh, no… But to be honest, I wasn’t looking too closely,” Hughes smiled in a placating manner. “Want me to call it?” Roy could tell that his boyfriend was tense after the abrupt halt but appreciated that Maes made himself look nonchalant.

“Yeah, I suppose,” Roy replied. “I don’t hear it buzzing anymore.”

After a few seconds, Maes found his pocket in his jeans and located his phone. Roy watched as the green-eyed man unlocked his pristine-screened iPhone, punched in his passcode, navigated to his favorites, and finally selected Roy’s name. Maes held the phone up to show he had dialed, and Roy saw a disgustingly cute picture of the two of them on New Year’s Eve. As Roy smiled at the memory, buzzing was heard throughout the small studio apartment once more.

It took Roy a few moments, but he finally found the offending phone. In the bottom of the closet. Under his favorite blue sweater that he _could have sworn_ was not there earlier.

Shooting Maes a thank you glance, he woke the screen to see two missed calls and five text messages.

 

**Jean Havoc** , 18:08: Dude, is it you cooking something in the ground floor kitchen?

**Missed Call:** _Jean Havoc_ , 18:09

 

Roy was almost positive his stomach dropped completely from his body, and he slid down the closet door frame to meet it on the floor. Scrolling down his notification center, he continued, sensing it was already too late.

 

**Jean Havoc** , 18:10: Seriously, Mustang, there’s something in the oven and I see smoke

**Jean Havoc** , 18:10: You know the temperature you set this oven at is like 25 degrees higher than normal ovens, right??

 

_No, Jean, why the hell would I know that? You know as well as I do that no one uses that oven for anything_ , thought Roy frantically.

 

**Missed Call** : _Jean Havoc_ , 18:11

**Jean Havoc** , 18:14: Yeah, I just pulled it out of the oven for you. You’re welcome.

**Jean Havoc** , 18:15: Dude, it looks like a charcoal brick. Bone app the teeth

 

“Fuck.” Roy whispered.

“So, is uh… is everything alright?” Maes asked, still in a state of undress, from across the room.

Roy felt his head drop backward and meet the door frame as his throat betrayed him. It suddenly became difficult to swallow around the lump he could feel in it.

“It’s fine,” he said in the cheeriest tone possible, hoping that Maes bought his story.

“Yeah, nothing about any of that said ‘I’m fine,’ Roy. What’s wrong?” He unceremoniously shoved himself back into his jeans and crossed the room to kneel down directly in front of Roy.

Mustang took a shuddering breath. “Really, I’m okay. I just… burnt dinner beyond anything recognizable.”

“Come on, Roy, I’m sure it’s not that bad,” Maes scoffed. Roy leveled his eyes at him and turned the phone around. “Oh. That looks…well done?” he offered placatingly, only to receive another glare from Roy.

“I just wanted everything to be perfect for you. I got these really nice cuts of meat, and I set up nicely, but then I dropped the steak in the mud on the way here, and then I got stuff on my shirt, and then I lost track of time -” he cut off as Maes smiled at him.

“Roy. Look at me.” Dark eyes met bright green. “You didn’t have to do all this. I know I make a fuss about Valentine’s Day not being a special holiday or whatever, but any holiday that I spend with you is a special one. Steak and candlelight wasn’t going to be what made this special. It was you.”

A watery smile broke Roy’s face as he pulled Maes in for the tightest hug either had ever received.

“Now, what do you say we order in some ridiculously cheap take out to eat by candlelight?” Maes proposed.

Roy nodded as relief rushed over him. Not that he really thought Maes would be mad at all - Maes is a cynic, but he was never one that was quick to anger. The blue glow of Maes’s screen illuminated his glasses as he opened Grubhub to order something. Roy didn’t even know or care what he was ordering. Guilt wormed its way into his consciousness; this was supposed to be his night.

“Sorry,” he said softly.

“There’s no need to apologize, love,” came the gentle reply. “I’m sure you put a lot of time and effort into all this planning. But hey, the best laid plans of mice and men, right?”

Roy rolled his eyes at the old adage but chuckled nonetheless. “I did,” he replied honestly. “But now I’m starting to think I had the wrong idea all along.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. There is something way more appetizing in front of me right now that I fear I let get too cold.” A hungry fire lit in the depths of Roy’s dark eyes, and Maes smiled seductively.

“How long will it take for food to be delivered?” Hughes asked innocently.

Confused, Roy answered, “Typically a half an hour, but being Valentine’s Day probably closer to an hour… why?”

“We can work up an appetite while we wait for it to get here.”

Blush blossomed on Roy’s face as he realized the implication of Maes’s words. He allowed his boyfriend to place a series of gentle kisses all along his face and neck while attempting to order their food, only to immediately capture his lips after hanging up.

Almost immediately, the two were shirtless as they moved together towards the bed.

_This really is the best Valentine’s Day ever_ , thought Roy as the sound of a zipper followed by the feeling of a searing heat enveloped his length. Maes hummed appreciatively. White flooded his vision as Maes’s throat vibrated around Roy’s cock. And soon the buzzing seeped through Roy’s body in the form of twitching muscles and quickened breath. Roy’s mind reeled from the pleasure. With an obscene pop, Maes released him from his mouth and the cool air pricked against his heated skin.

Both men groaned as Maes crawled up Roy’s body, peppering it with open-mouthed kisses before finally meeting his mouth again in a passionate kiss. Maes reached confidently into the night stand for the lube that he knew Roy kept there and triumphantly pulled his spoils from the drawer.

He warmed the slick on his hands and proceeded to slip one finger inside of Roy, followed quickly by a second. Roy sighed appreciatively, relishing in the sensation. Using his two fingers, he confidently opened up his lover, reaching his head down and caressing his lips with his tongue. Roy panted as Maes just barely touched that magical spot within him. Maes chuckled.

He also knew exactly what his boyfriend liked.

A third finger. A sigh. A moan. A plea.

The snick of the lube cap opening again was lost to Roy in his pleasure, until he felt the head of Maes pushing against his entrance. Eager, yet willing himself to relax, he reveled in the moment.

There was none other like it.

He felt his body adjust and nodded, feeling Maes’s pulse from a place deep within him. He keened as Maes thrusted for the first time, impaling Roy to both of their delight.

The give and take from Maes felt wondrous. And Roy, full to the brim, saw stars as Maes thrust a fourth or fifth time. It was pointless to keep count. Maes’s large, soft palms wrapped around his cock, stroking faster as both lovers fell to pieces in the other’s arms. Roy was seeing stars. Reduced to an inarticulate mess, he wasted no time at all in allowing Maes to see just exactly how thoroughly he was being fucked.

White splattered their stomachs, Roy gasping and Maes whispering “I love you” as his member was gripped and released in the vice that was his boyfriend. Maes toppled over the edge three short thrusts later.

Lying together in a tangled mess of limbs, panting and sated, Maes smiled.

Roy’s head was comfortably nestled underneath Maes’s chin, basking in the afterglow. He felt Maes give him a gentle squeeze, his biceps cradling Roy’s body.

“I think I like Valentine’s Day.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!! Comments and kudos could be your Valentine to me! ;) But please, feel free to harass me on [Tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/vino-and-doggos), or if you've jumped ship, give me a follow on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/vino_and_doggos).


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